Friday 27 November 2009 10.42 EST
First published on Friday 27 November 2009 10.42 EST

Sven-Goran Eriksson has demanded immediate payment of the multimillion-pound sum he claims he is owed from Swiss Commodity Holding under the terms of his recruitment by Notts County.

The former England manager has been working as director of football at Meadow Lane since the British Virgin Islands-registered company Qadbak Investments bought the company in June. Eriksson believes that, alongside his five-year contract with the club, a side agreement was struck with SCH under which he would become an "ambassador" for the Zurich company.

Sources close to Eriksson say he believes he was promised he would receive a seven-figure payment upon the stockmarket flotation of the company, which had been expected within two months of his joining the club.

As a millionaire Eriksson is not in need of the funds, and has willingly been working on a much-reduced salary from the £2.5m package widely reported. The request, issued last week, was for the money to be paid this week, although it is unclear whether that has taken place. Payment would reassure Eriksson about the viability of a project in which he has invested much emotional and reputational capital over the past six months.

A spokesman for the club said that it could not comment on Eriksson's contractual affairs and denied that there had ever been any plans to float SCH. This contradicts a report in the Daily Telegraph, which claimed that two representatives from the company approached Cazenove and Rothschild for advice on a listing, and a director of First London Securities, which has links with SCH, who told the Guardian that a flotation was planned for the early months of 2010.

Eriksson has privately told several acquaintances that he is enjoying his time at Meadow Lane, where the executive chairman, Peter Trembling, has forged a strong relationship with him. The wide and varied aspects of his role have been a new experience for the Swede and he is said to feel he owes it to the club's fans, staff and players to stay.

Indeed, he is aware several of the players who joined the club following its acquisition by Qadbak in the summer did so due to the attraction of working under Eriksson. But Eriksson is understood to be increasingly concerned that the expectation that Notts County can shoot for the stars and challenge for the Premier League within five years might not become reality.

If Eriksson decides to quit Meadow Lane – and it must be stressed he has made no decision yet – it would be a major blow to Qadbak's stewardship of the club.

In the event of Eriksson accepting another job while in post at Notts County it would trigger a clause in his contract that would require a seven-figure compensation payment to the club from his new employer. However, if Eriksson quits without a job to move to the club is unlikely to receive anything, and recruiting another figure of his stature might prove more problematic.